Stafford conviction affirmed by appeals court

Stafford, who was convicted of manslaughter and attempted manslaughter in connection with the December 2016 death of six-year-old Jeremy Mardis and the wounding of his father, Chris Few, appealed to the Third Circuit Court of Appeal.

Stafford, who was a Marksville City Marshal at the time, was sentenced to 40 years on the manslaughter charge and 20 years on the attempted manslaughter charge. The sentences are to run at the same time.

The Third Circuit reviewed the court record and Stafford's appeal and affirmed both his sentences and the convictions.

In the opinion, the court wrote that it could be argued that there was sufficient evidence to convict Stafford of second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder. The lesser verdicts were a "benefit" to him, the court wrote.